UPDATE: As of yesterday (March 15) the Cape Town Carnival is cancelled, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s ban on gatherings of more than 100 people.

Music group, Khoi Khonnexion, headed by Glen Arendse, will open the Cape Town Carnival on March 21 with his Khoi-Khoi-inspired mouthbow performance.

The Carnival’s theme this year is ‘Incredible Journey: Sounds of South Africa’, a tribute to the rich cultural diversity of the country through art, song and dance.

General access is free but seated and hospitality tickets are also available. The event will be held at the Green Point Fan Walk.

Arendse’s opening act, called Footsteps of the First Artists, will include stilt walkers on a moving float in celebration of the very first South African musicians.

“Part of my mission is to bring attention to the rich heritage of our first nation. The mouthbow, for example, is a means of awakening the imagination, thoughts and feelings around how instinctively talented and gifted the San and Khoi-Khoi were and are,” says Arendse.

The show will also feature a giant sculpture of an eland, which was believed by the Khoisan people to have mystical powers and is often seen in rock art from that time.